Percy Jackson and the Fraction Challenge
by Jen.CRTF.School
Summary: "Descendants of rivals shall lead the quest/through the eye they travel west. Tricked and fooled, in the end they fail/for the god imprisoned is not to hail." A new prophecy comes out, and Percy and Annabeth embark on yet another adventure - this time to save the god of fractions, Fraktyon. Written for a school project. Set between TTC and TBOL. One-shot. Complete.


**A/N: This was made for a school project. Will be reposted on Can'tResistThisFantabulosity's account.  
**

**A note for our teacher:**

**I'm not sure if you have read the Percy Jackson series, so I'm just going to fill you in. :) Kronos is a Titan who wants to rule the world instead of the Greek Gods and he wants to destroy the Greeks. Many minor Greek gods, who have been ignored for centuries, are tired of being in the shadows and want to help Kronos so they can finally have power. But Kronos is the antagonist, so any of his followers are antagonists as well. The Great Prophecy is the prophecy that can determine the fate of the Greek gods and Kronos.  
**

**Hope this helps! :)**

* * *

**Percy Jackson and the Fraction Challenge**

by Jen and Lucy

* * *

**My day was going fine** until I got dragged into the girl's bathroom.

At the moment, my face was smashed onto the floor tiles. As my body rubbed against the surface, dust and hairs were beginning to gather on my clothes. Reaching out, I clawed at the tiled designs while my feet dangled in the air, and suddenly felt hands tighten their grip on my ankles. I yelped in pain as the invisible girl behind me yanked my leg.

Yeah, that's right - I said invisible.

If you were a mortal - meaning the normal, average citizen - watching this, you'd probably think that this was some sort of odd dance move, or that you were hallucinating. It's a strange sight - a boy with his legs in the air moving towards the girls bathroom - it's almost as if someone invisible was pulling him from behind. It can't be, though, because there's no such thing as invisibility, right?

But if you were like me, you would know better.

I'm Percy Jackson, son of the Sea God, and a demigod. As in, half Greek god and half-human. So basically, the Greek Gods still exist, and I happen to be one of their children.

You're probably thinking about how cool it is to be half-_god, _but before you get excited, I'm going to tell you that the life of a demigod _really _sucks. Most of the time, half-bloods have a rough childhood due to their godly parent leaving at a young age and causing their mortal parent to go insane. Some of us ran away from home, while few were found and sent to a camp for training called Camp Half-Blood. Even there, your godly parent may not claim you. Another reason being a demigod sucks is because you are cursed with learning disabilities. It's mainly just ADHD, but if the gods hate you, they give you dyslexia too. Lucky me - I have both. However, ADHD helps us in combat, so we like to think of it more like a gift to make ourselves feel a little better.

But you know the part of being a demigod that I hate the most?

_Monsters._

No matter how young you are, you can get chased by monsters. If your godly parent is one of the minor gods, you have it easy. Your scent is weaker and less noticeable to the monsters. But if you're a child of a major god... you're in _big_ trouble. My father, Poseidon, happens to be one of the Big Three (leading three gods) so I'm expecting to die from a monster attack any minute now. But major or minor, monsters enjoy a good demigod snack.

Which brings me back to the girl's bathroom.

I was still being dragged by the ankles, and my eyes widened as I was getting dangerously close to the stalls. Finally, the door to the stall slammed shut from the touch of an invisible hand. The air shimmered in front of me, and my invisible friend took off her magical Yankees cap and appeared, looking slightly miffed.

Introducing Annabeth Chase, my part-time invisible friend when wearing her Yankees cap, full-time genius as a daughter of Athena (goddess of wisdom) and as my know-it-all best friend. Well, I wasn't sure if I should've considered her my best friend after she kidnapped me and shoved me into the girl's bathroom, but I had to trust a child of Athena, right?

Realizing I was still on the floor, she lent a hand to help me up.

"Geez, Seaweed Brain. What did you eat for lunch?" Annabeth said sarcastically.

Under normal circumstances, I would have blushed and told her to not call me Seaweed Brain, but something was seriously wrong at the moment. (I mean, besides the fact that I was in the girl's bathroom.)

Remember those monsters I told you about? Well, we were planning on going to the movies to watch Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief (yeah, that's right - I've got my own movie) when we got attacked by a herd of Greek monsters called Cyclopes. They were gigantic, ugly, and all had one single eye in the middle of their face. Though normally we would have fought them right on the spot, we couldn't battle them in a movie theater - or at least according to _Annabeth. __I,_ on the other hand, had _no _problem with it. So we tried to outrun them, but those Cyclopes were abnormally fast. They tracked us down within the matter of minutes and found us at Burger King, trying to blend in.

And of course, my best friend decided to hide us in the girl's bathroom.

"Anyways," she said, entering her ultimate-Athena-battle-plan mode. "We need a plan. I'll get out and distract them, while you explode the toilets. As the water blasts them, I'll stab as many as I can with my Yankees cap on so they can't see me. Burst a toilet every thirty seconds, so I'll know when to get out of the way."

I nodded, taking everything in. Bursting toilets was no problem for me - as the son of the sea god, I had special privileges and was allowed to blast as many toilets as I wanted. After all, I controlled water.

"Also," she continued, "if we need to escape we'll go through the windows where they can't get through. If the windows are blocked, we'll have to charge through the main entrance and try to escap-"

_Bam!_ A strong wind pushed into the restroom, and I heard the bang of the door being broken down. That could only mean one thing.

The monsters had arrived.

**|::::::|**

"Now!" Annabeth whispered.

She leaped into action, unsheathing her dagger and charging at the monsters, distracting them. She stomped her feet and clapped her hands as she jumped all over the place, ducking as the Cyclopes swung at her. She pulled out her Yankees hat while narrowly missing a Cyclops's slap, and her figure wavered and eventually vanished. The monsters were baffled, but I knew their confusion would only last a few seconds. I took a deep breath, and with the flick of my hand, the toilet next to me exploded and the water squirted out. I urged the water to go forward.

Five Cyclopes were hit with a massive wave of water. They all groaned and turned to face me as I counted the number of seconds that went by. As they advanced, they didn't notice the hovering dagger that was beneath them. I smiled to myself. There were perks to having a friend who could turn invisible.

Annabeth stabbed the Cyclops's foot. The one-eyed monster screamed in agony and swatted blindly at his feet, hoping to hit the scoundrel who had just hurt him. He toppled over, and Annabeth struck him in the heart.

But it didn't happen. The monster didn't dissolve like it usually did. In fact, the monster stood up, as if the wound wasn't there, and joined his group. They all stared at me challengingly with their glassy brown eyes. One spoke up.

"Ah," he said with a raspy voice, "the child of Poseidon. Hopeless without knowledge. _Graecus_ scum, you cannot kill us!" He laughed a deep boisterous laugh.

I wanted to tell him to go to Tartarus, but was afraid. The monster that Annabeth had stabbed was now healed, his wound nothing but a thin white line that was disappearing as smoke rised from the scar. How could I kill this monster if they always healed?

I felt a presence by my side. Annabeth.

"Percy," she whispered in my ear, "These are not ordinary Cyclopes. They served the god of fractions, Fraktyon. They cannot be defeated with weapons."

I was incredulous. "So they can't be killed? Annabeth, there has to be a way, right?"

"There is a way to destroy them," Annabeth admitted. "With the power of math."

Right then, I knew I was going to die. Of all the ways to kill a monster, I had to use math. I gulped._  
_

Annabeth's hand patted me reassuringly on the back. "I'll handle this, Seaweed Brain." I felt a light breeze pass my left side, marking Annabeth's departure.

Thank the gods that I had a daughter of Athena as my best friend. Otherwise I'd be dead.

Suddenly my confidence was back. The Cyclopes lumbered towards me. "Where is the child of Athena? We must destroy her," they moaned.

"I don't know who you're talking about. Do you mean my friend Malcolm?" I feigned confusion. "Or do you mean Daedalus? He's in the Underworld, just in case you're wondering. Or are you searching for George Washington? He's dead already, though, and I really don't know who you're talking about." I hoped I bought Annabeth some time.

The Cyclops from earlier scratched his head. "We are searching for Annabeth," he said, enunciating her name slowly. I could've sworn I heard Annabeth snicker. He stated more surely, "We are not searching for a demigod named Malcolm. Where is the girl?"

Annabeth's voice rang out from my right, answering his question. "Eleven nineteenths plus one sixth equals eighty five over a hundred fourteen!"

Almost as soon as the words left her mouth, the Cyclops on the right froze. He clutched his chest in pain as he disintegrated. The remaining eleven turned to the ashes in horror.

"The child is here!" the leading Cyclops roared. "Attack!"

The group of Cyclopes dispersed, screaming in random directions and hitting the air. My heart raced, hoping they didn't hurt Annabeth. When Annabeth's voice rang out for a second attack, I was flooded with relief.

"Seventeen twentieths minus three fifths equals one fourth!" As she kept shouting out answers, the Cyclopes thrashed and fell down, disappearing one by one, until only the Cyclops leader was left.

"Foolish demigod!" the beast snarled at me. "If you had told me where the girl was, you would owe me nothing, half-blood, and I would have set you free! But now, not only have you chosen a terrible enemy, Percy Jackson, you also owe me the pleasure of having your little friend killed." He laughed humorlessly, then lunged to the side.

He cackled maliciously. "At last! I have defeated the child of Athena!"

My eyes widened as I followed the falling Yankees cap to the mess of blond curls clamped between his hands. I could barely see Annabeth's face, but I didn't have to see her to know that she was suffocating.

"Drop her!" I screamed at him. "She'll die!"

The monster glared at me, his cold brown eye staring at my sea-green ones. "You stupid halfbloods! Of course she'll die!" He squeezed harder.

Annabeth squirmed in his grasp. I could see her face paling and her eyes rolling back into her head.

I tried to calm myself. No, I couldn't destroy him, but I just needed to make him drop Annabeth. There were no more sinks or toilets to blast in the girls' bathroom but in the men's... I closed my eyes and summoned the water.

With a burst of energy, I heard a crash and some masculine shrieks. I smiled inwardly.

"What the Hades..." the Cyclops loosened his grip on Annabeth and turned towards the door, where the sound was coming from.

A stream of water pushed past the door and hit him square in the chest. He toppled over from force and Annabeth was freed.

I had never felt so relieved. I watched her greedily breathe in some air as the colour in her skin began to reappear. Wheezing, she grinned weakily at me. _Thanks Seaweed Brain, _she mouthed. Clutching her stomach, Annabeth stood up, wincing a little but overall looking fine.

"Lady Athena would not approve of this," Annabeth admonished with a dangerous edge in her voice.

The Cyclops scowled. "Athena is not my master anymore. I have no obligations."

"I am her daughter," Annabeth asserted proudly. "She will not overlook this. Let us go if you wish not to be killed."

The one-eyed monster hesitated, fearful at the thought of Athena.

Making up his mind, the Cyclops growled. "You are lucky, demigods. I will spare you your lives... for now." He looked greatly displeased. "And for the son of Poseidon," he pointed towards me, "beware! I will come after you when you least expect it. And if you are wise, you will not come after me, for I am not like the rest." the corner of his mouth curled up into a half-smirk. "Until then, young half-bloods."

And with the snap of his fingers, he was gone.

**|::::::|**

"How did you _do _that?" I asked in amazement as we walked out of Burger King.

"Do what?" Annabeth asked modestly, though I knew that she was secretly proud.

"Destroy all those Cyclopes!" I exclaimed. "Wise Girl, that was horrifying and awesome at the same time."

My best friend just smirked. "Math, Seaweed Brain. You would know if you paid attention in math class."

I gave her my best cute-puppy look. _Please? _I silently begged.

Annabeth rolled her eyes, scoffing, but still told me. "Percy, remember back there when I told you they serve Fraktyon?"

I nodded.

"Well, Fraktyon is the god of fractions," she explained. "He's a minor god that collaborated with Athena. Math and knowledge - it worked well. Anyways, Fraktyon has these warriors to defend him because Fraktyon isn't very skilled in physical fighting. There were thirteen of these warriors who were all Cyclopes. They were the monsters we just fought. These Cyclopes, however, are not ordinary, Percy. When they were dubbed protectors of Fraktyon, he blessed them with immortality. Along with that, he engraved fraction equations on their arms to mark them as his. The only way they can be killed is if you solve the math equation on their arms, or if you kill Fraktyon himself, which will never happen."

The information seemed to all click together. "Wait," I said. "But we faced twelve of them. You said there were thirteen."

"Yes," Annabeth replied impatiently. "I was just getting there. So many centuries ago, his warriors turned on him. They said that they wanted freedom and that they no longer wanted to serve him. One of the Cyclopes poisoned his tea one day, and when Fraktyon found out, he was angered and killed the original leader Cyclops who put the poison in his drink. Now, they roam freely, seeking revenge on their ancient master, attacking whenever they feel like it," she finished, shrugging.

"Well?"

Annabeth frowned. "What?"

"Aren't you going to teach me?" I asked eagerly.

She sighed. "Alright, it's not _that _hard."

"Well for you, that is," I replied.

"Okay. First, you have to find a common denominator," she began.

"How do you find the common denominator?"

"I was just going to tell you," Annabeth said, exasperated. "So let's say you were adding one quarter and one third. The common denominator is a number that the denominators - the bottom number on a fraction - are both multiples of. So, the common denominator of one quarter and one third would be twelve, since four and three are both multiples of twelve."

"Okay," I said. "What do you do after that?"

"Now you have to change both fractions so that the common denominator is the denominator for both fractions. Remember how I said that three and four are both multiples of twelve?"

"Yeah."

"Well then, you have to multiply the denominator, in this case by three - because four times three equals twelve - so that it becomes the common denominator. And since you multiplied the denominator by three, you have to multiply the numerator by three also. Then, you do the same to the other fraction so it's denominator is twelve too," stated Annabeth. "Then you would add and subtract the numerators."

"Oh, I get it now! So one third would be four twelfths, and one quarter would be three twelfths, and then you add them. Uh... four plus three is seven, and twelve plus twelve is twenty-four, so it would be seven twenty-fourths!" I exclaimed excitedly.

"No, no, _no_! You're doing it all wrong! The denominator stays the same, so it would be seven twelfths, Seaweed Brain," she scolded. "It's okay, I'll handle the math for now, Percy."

I pouted. "Please, Annabeth? Teach me again!"

Annabeth rolled her eyes playfully. "Later Seaweed Brain. Any more questions?"

I opened my mouth to ask her to teach me, but then I remembered what I needed to tell Annabeth, flashing back to the time of the attack. _I will come after you when you least expect it. And if you are wise, you will not come after me, for I am not like the rest. _Surely Annabeth would understand.

"The Cyclops said that he wasn't like the rest," I recalled. "Not like the rest? What could he have meant by that?"

Annabeth thought for a moment and glanced back at me, and for once, the child of Athena had no answer. "I guess we'll have to visit the Oracle."

**|::::::|**

I was a nervous wreck. The last few times I visited the Oracle for a quest, the quests had succeeded, but at great costs. The first time I visited the Oracle, I was accused of stealing Zeus's beloved weapon, the Master Bolt, and was nearly killed by the lord of the skies himself. The second time, I watched a daughter of Hades sacrifice herself for a gift for her brother, then saw Annabeth getting tortured by being forced to hold the weight of the sky.

So, yeah, you could see why I wasn't particularly thrilled to see the Oracle. And it didn't help that the Spirit of Delphi possessed the body of an old, female mummy.

"It is the only way, Percy," Chiron said. He was a centaur, a half-man and half-horse who was the activities director of Camp Half-Blood, which was basically a training center for demigods. We had to visit him first before consulting the Oracle. "It is the only way I can permit you to go on a quest."

I took a deep breath, then waved Annabeth over. "Come on. Let's go."

We climbed up to the attic, where the spirit of Delphi resides. I pulled the cord to the green trapdoor and it clattered open.

The attic was just how I remembered it. It stunk of reptiles and was filled up with useless demigod weapons and awards that looked like they weren't touched in decades. The room was covered with cobwebs and on one long table there were glass jars of monster parts - furry claws, gigantic yellow eyes, and a huge Hydra head.

Next to the tiny window was the Oracle.

She lay lifelessly against the dirty glass, dressed in a torn sundress. Around her neck there were beaded necklaces, covered by her long black hair. The skin on her face was stretched out and thin, and her eyes were dull white slits, signifying her old age.

Then she opened her mouth, and came to life. Green mist passed her lips, flowing around her in swirls. Her mouth opened wider, and I heard her raspy voice in my mind.

_I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, and slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask. _

Annabeth stepped forward, reminding me of her presence. "What is our destiny?"

The green smoke twirled more intensely as the hissing noise grew louder. Still, her voice was loud and clear in my head. In her monotone voice, she stated the prophecy.

_Descendants of rivals shall lead the quest, _

_Through the eye they travel west,_

_Tricked and fooled, in the end they fail, _

_for the god imprisoned is not to hail._

Then her head abruptly lolled back. Her body slumped against the window. The green mist was sucked back into her mouth, the hissing dying down.

The Oracle had spoken.

**|::::::|**

The next day, we left for our quest.

We had packed a change of clothes, some ambrosia, and nectar, along with our water bottles, and Annabeth and I were set to go. Chiron had allowed us to go on the quest, seeing as the Oracle said descendants of rivals (son of Poseidon and daughter of Athena), and excused us from breakfast and had watched us cross the border to the mortal world without letting any of our friends come say goodbye.

"This quest must stay a secret," Chiron said before we left. "If the others know, it will be chaos. They will be worried, and with the Great Prophecy, it's best to keep this a secret."

Right now, Annabeth and I walked in silence, trudging down Half-Blood Hill, watching as Chiron's figure became smaller and smaller until it disappeared. As we traveled, we talked about the prophecy.

"What do you think it means?" I asked her.

Annabeth pursed her lips. "To be honest, I don't know. One thing for sure, we have to travel west."

"Like, tricked and fooled, in the end they fail? That doesn't sound too good," I thought aloud.

"Maybe we are tricked and we fail? But that doesn't seem right..."

"Oh! The god is imprisoned, right? And not to hail! So we know the god of hail didn't imprison him," I observed.

Annabeth smacked her forehead. "You're such a Seaweed Brain."

I suggested another idea. "Maybe we don't fail, and the prophecy is misleading us?"

"Unlikely," Annabeth said. "I think it might mean that we have to use our eyes to our advantage or else we fail."

I shook my head. "Doesn't make sense."

"Yeah, but whatever it is, it doesn't sound pleasant."

I agreed silently. Failing? I'd failed plenty of tests in school and never cared much, but on a quest, the definition of fail is death. The prophecy sounded horrible.

We walked into the city by the time it was nightfall. The stars glistened and the sky was a pretty shade of indigo. We settled down next to a big tree and prepared ourselves for the night.

"I'll take first watch," Annabeth volunteered.

I was too tired to complain. I lay down and immediately drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, I woke up to a wet, gooey substance reeking of rotting caviar dripping onto my face. I realized that a group of hellhounds must have found us. Instinctively, I drew out my dagger from my back pocket, and thrust my hand forward. The blade lodged itself into the beast''s flesh, and I kicked it away from me. The hellhound howled in agony as it slammed into a nearby cliff. All the calamity woke up Annabeth, and to my relief, she realized what must have happened and set to work on killing the first hellhound of the group.

"Fourteen twenty-ones minus three sevenths equals five twenty-ones!"

They disappeared one by one as she kept shouting out the answers. What she didn't realize was that there was one creeping up behind her. My heart raced, and her words echoed in my mind, _First, find the common denominator._ The engraving on the hellhound read: three quarters plus one seventh. _So the common denominator must be twenty eight. Then I have to change the numerators... So it would be twenty one twenty eighths, plus four over twenty eight._

I was nearly done the equation, when the hellhound pounced. Just before it's claws reached Annabeth's head, I screamed out the answer.

"Twenty five over twenty eight!"

As soon as I said it, the hellhound disintegrated, the particles raining down on Annabeth. She spun around in shock, her blond curls shaking out the remnants of the monster.

"Thanks Percy," she mumbled, "You just saved my life."

I grinned. "You're welcome!" I said smugly. "Now come on Annabeth, we've got to get to the West!"

Annabeth just stood there, gaping. "You solved a math equation," she said in disbelief. "You just solved a math equation."

I nodded with happiness. "Yep!"

Annabeth shook her head. "Gods," she said while rubbing her forehead. "You know what? Let's just go."

She started to walk with her back still facing me, still massaging her forehead. But as she turned away, there was the smallest trace of a smile on her face.

**|::::::|**

At the moment, Annabeth and I were at the train station, arguing over which train to board.

"No, Percy," she sighed, "We can't take this train, because it loops around! We won't be going west then!"

I frowned. "But look at the map! The route loops, then comes back!"

Annabeth face-palmed. "Percy, I'm talking about the yellow train! Just let me handle this, alright?"

"But-" My protest was cut off.

Suddenly, an old gray car zoomed past us. It was spiraling on the ground, and barely hit the brakes in time before hitting a wall. The car was completely out of control.

Screechy voices rang out from the car. Though it was difficult to hear them over the scratchy sounds of the tires, I managed to overhear a few sentences.

"Give me the eye, Tempest!" a voice shrieked.

"Never! It's my turn!" another voice cackled.

"I need the eye the most - I'm driving!" wailed another.

"No!"

"Pass it over, Wasp!"

"You'll squash it!"

Annabeth and I listened to the three voices fight, and we glanced at each other knowingly.

"The Gray Sisters," we groaned in unison.

Allow me to explain. On my second quest, Annabeth, Grover (my half-goat friend), and I needed quick transportation. So Annabeth called for help and The Gray Sisters arrived.

The Gray Sisters are three sisters that drive a cab that travels at an extremely high speed, and that is made for demigods. They would easily be the best kind of transportation if it weren't for a major setback - all three sisters shared one eye. Needless to say, riding with them was dangerous and unpleasant. I vowed to never use it again.

Annabeth seemed to be thinking otherwise.

"Through the eye, they travel west..." she murmured under her breath.

Annabeth jolted up. "I've got it!" she said proudly, though she didn't sound particularly happy about her discovery. "Percy, we've got to ride with the Gray Sisters."

My eyes nearly bulged out of my head. "Are you crazy?"

"It's the only way," Annabeth explained. "The prophecy says, _Through the eye they travel west. _At first I thought it had two separate meanings, but now I realized that we are supposed to travel west with the help of an eye. The Gray Sisters - they have one eye."

I moaned, although I knew she was right. Trying to change the prophecy would make matters worse.

So we boarded the gray cab.

When we hopped on, the sister with the eye spoke. "It's them again! The child of Poseidon and the offspring of Athena!"

The other sister behind the wheel was astonished. "Really? But most heroes never come back! Let me see!" She grabbed for the eye.

The third sister reached for it too. "Give it to me!" She attacked the first sister and growled. Then she leaned back, retreating, and held out the eye. "Victory!" she declared.

Before she could pop it in, the driver took it, and shoved it in her empty eye socket. "Ah, yes, Wasp is right. Well then, young demigods, where do you wish to go?"

"To the West," Annabeth replied. She stuck out her hand, revealing two gold drachmas (Greek money).

The sister with the eye looked at it greedily. "Of course. Buckle up, children," she said, snatching the money, and hitting the accelerator.

The car lurched forward.

"Annabeth!" I screamed in fury. I looked at her over my shoulder, and saw that she looked just as terrified as I was.

The Gray Sister driving still had the eye, thankfully. However, her driving was still horrible. I felt like I was going to throw up.

"Anger, I want the eye!"

"No! I'm driving!"

Things started going down from there. Tempest clawed at Anger's face, eventually pulling out the eye and stuffing it in her eye socket. "Much better," she remarked with delight.

Anger, on the other hand, wasn't doing so well. She was swooping down then flying up when we were about the hit the ground. "I can't see, Tempest! Give me the eye, now!"

"No! Remember? Thursdays are my turn!"

"I need to see to drive! Pass it over!" The car almost flipped over.

Tempest refused to give it to her. "Then I'll drive!" She leaned over and yanked the steering wheel. We took a sharp turn left.

"They said west, Anger!" reminded Wasp.

At this point, Annabeth and I didn't really care. We just wanted to get out of the car fast.

"Give her the eye, Tempest! We need to complete our quest!" I yelled over the noise.

Annabeth joined in agreement. "Tempest, give her the eye!"

The sister turned back to face us. "No," she sneered, "It's mine!" She pulled the steering wheel abruptly, and we were plummeting to the ground.

"_Ah_!" Annabeth and I yelped. "_Give her the eye!_"

Reluctantly, Tempest passed it over. But it was too late - we were going to hit the ground.

I braced myself for the impact, reaching for Annabeth. I waited, but the crash never came.

_Something cushioned our fall, _I thought in relief.

Slowly, I opened my eyes.

I gazed out of the shattered window, and my muscles instantly tensed. Instinctively, I reached for my sword, Riptide. Correction: _Someone _had cushioned our fall.

"Hello, demigods," the Cyclops snarled. "We meet again."

**|::::::|**

The Cyclops managed to take us away without the Gray Sisters even noticing. He just whipped us over his shoulders effortlessly and carried us.

The Cyclops had been walking for a while now. From what I could see from behind the Cyclops, we were in a deserted part of the town, with empty fields of nothing but grass. Annabeth was pounding on his back with her fists, but the Cyclops didn't even flinch.

"I would stop that if I were you, daughter of Athena," the Cyclops said calmly. Annabeth didn't listen. "I could kill you this instant."

Annabeth quit hitting him, but spat in his eye. She muttered a Latin curse word under her mouth.

Then the Cyclops stopped walking. In that moment, I thought I was going to die, with murderous rage glinting in his red eye. _Heroes' fates are always sad, _I remembered.

But he set us down gently, and turned us around so we could see where he brought us. Annabeth gasped in awe.

We were facing a humongous castle, constructed by large gray and white stones that were perfectly cut. There was a tower on the side, with a gold flag waving with the rhythm of the wind. Math equations were engraved onto the ancient walls of the building that caused the place to have a glowing aura.

"As you may have figured out by now, child of Athena," the Cyclops said with pride, "I am Multiplius, slayer of the son of the god of whole numbers, builder of this palace, and first and foremost, enemy of my hostage, the god of fractions: Fraktyon." Annabeth's mouth formed an 'O', realizing something. "We will keep you with him until Master tells me otherwise."

As soon as he finished talking, Annabeth spoke up. "Master...You're refering to Kronos, aren't you? You work for him!"

I wanted to slap myself. I should have known. Kronos, the Titan leader, had wanted me to be on his side ever since I entered the demigod world. I should have known that this prophecy was related to the Great Prophecy.

The one-eyed creature grinned. "A daughter of Athena indeed. Your trainer Chiron was foolish not to see this coming."

Then he lifted us up by the top of our orange T-shirts and dragged us towards a room.

"You will stay in here until I come to get you. Food will be brought in twice a day."

Multiplius opened the door and shoved us into the dark room.

And sure enough, there was the god of fractions. He was sitting in a chair, tied up in chains, his salt-and-pepper hair wet with sweat and his expensive-looking dress shirt torn at the arm. His glasses were cracked and would've looked like a stereotypical professor if he hadn't been tortured.

He was the imprisoned god in the prophecy. As he entered the room, his pale green eyes looked up at us with a strange coldness.

"Young half-bloods, your courage and strength will be rewarded when you help me escape," he told us, staring us boldly in the eye. The door slammed shut, signaling the Cyclops's departure.

Then the lights in the room flickered on, and the fraction gods smiled wickedly at us. "That is, if you make it out alive."

**|::::::|**

Within seconds, he had Annabeth with a knife at her throat. His outfit was suddenly fixed, glasses not broken, shirt not ripped. The chains had fallen onto the chair he sat on. Suddenly everything made sense.

_Descendants of rivals shall lead the quest. _Children of Poseidon and Athena. Annabeth and me. _Through the eye they travel west. _With the help of the Gray Sisters and their one eye, we got captured by the also one-eyed Cyclops and traveled west. _Tricked and fooled, the two shall fail._ We were tricked into thinking that we were here to rescue the god but we didn't have to._ For the god imprisoned is not to hail. _Because Fraktyon was evil. He was working for Kronos.

"Move, Perseus Jackson," he growled, "And the girl dies."

"You traitor!" I yelled at him. I took out my sword and advanced.

Annabeth managed to squeak out a few words before I could attack. "Percy, let it go. You can't die here. The fate of the Greek gods depends on you."

"Listen to the girl, Perseus," the fraction god chastised. "She's right. You can't die. Lord Kronos needs you."

"Why did you do this?" I screamed angrily. "Why betray the Greek gods?"

He laughed bitterly. "You know the answer already, son of Poseidon. You, after all, experienced it yourself."

"What do you want from me?" I demanded harshly, my voice sounding strangled.

He cackled. "You know what I want. The other minor gods and I have already teamed up with Kronos. He promised us attention," he said wistfully, "as well as power in the New Golden Age. You can have this, too, Perseus, if you join us."

I glared at him. "Never!"

He continued. "You wish your father paid more attention to you. That he didn't leave you and your mother with that filthy mortal. You want to be loved, to have a fatherly figure in your life. But it will never happen."

"Stop!" I screamed.

"I understand. You want your father to love you, to spend time with you, to make you feel like you matter. We all seek attention and love. We want to be noticed and complimented. However your father doesn't give you love that you deserve - the love that we all deserve. Perseus, together, we can defeat them. Show them that we are worthy of their attention, and prove them wrong," he said in a tempting voice. He held out his hand. "Take my hand, Perseus, and we can rule together with Kronos. I will not kill the girl."

Annabeth's eyes were screaming _no!_ I gulped down the urge to take his hand, and mustered the energy to speak.

"Your offer is tempting," I said, the sarcasm not shining through like it usually does. "However, I will have to decline."

Fraktyon took this in, and nodded. Scowling, he stepped forward. "Alright," he sneered, "Then you leave me no choice, son of Poseidon. I will have to destroy your friend."

My eyes bulged. "No!" I wailed.

And he brought the knife down.

**|::::::|**

"Eighteen over ninety one!" Annabeth shouted before the knife killed her.

Fraktyon clutched his heart and dropped the dagger. Gold ichor (godly blood) poured out of his mouth and he staggered backwards onto his throne. Despite the fact that he was injured, he smiled sadistically.

"Indeed, a intelligent one," he praised. "Too bad you're not on my side."

He swung at Annabeth but she ducked. As he raised his arm, the white fabric of his shirt slipped and revealed more equations. _Five over six plus one half. _I first changed their denominators to six, then changed the numerators so they were still in proportion. _Two times three equals six...so one times three...that means one half got changed to three sixths...three sixths plus five sixths equals..._

"One and one third!"

His eyes widened. "B-but, you're a son of Poseidon!" he spluttered in disbelief.

"I taught him well," Annabeth boasted, then took out her dagger and began to fight with Fraktyon while yelling out answers to equations. I took out my sword and joined her.

As Annabeth answered each of them correctly, a little bit of gold ichor trickled down from his mouth and into the curve of his chin. But after each attack, he just stood back up. I could tell that Annabeth was getting tired and that she wasn't able to think as well.

"Foolish demigods! You cannot destroy me unless you solve The Equation of Death! Which you will never find!" he thrusted his sword forward.

I gasped in horror as the metal stabbed Annabeth's leg. "Annabeth!" I rushed to her aid, but couldn't reach her because Fraktyon was still battling with me.

As we fought, I watched fresh red blood leak onto the floors. The colour was slowly draining out of Annabeth's face and her lips were a pale pink. Soon, she had no energy to sit up and she collapsed on her back, holding her leg in pain. The tips of her blond curls were stained with the blood that had spilled on the ground. She was going to die if I didn't help her soon.

"Fraktyon," I shouted with murderous rage, "You are a monster!"

He snorted and shuffled to the side to avoid being skewered by my sword. "I may be a monster, but that is because of what the gods did to me!"

_"Argh!"_ I grunted. Then all I could see was red.

I twirled around, his sword grazing my orange Camp Half-blood shirt. I charged at him, aiming for his chest, but he knocked my sword away. I reached down to get it, kicking my feet up in the air to whack him in the face. I jumped back up and pointed my sword in different directions, feigning a stab. I used my shield to deflect his sword, and Fraktyon stood there, surprised. I took this chance and hit him in the head using the blunter side of the blade.

Fraktyon fell to the ground, not dead but in pain. I attempted to stab his back, but he rolled over and instead I pulled of a large chunk of his shirt.

And there is was: The Equation of Death. The equation was written in a fancy script and was carved into his skin. The fractions glowed gold, the light from the equation creating as much light as a lamp.

_Three fourths divided by eight multiplied by thirty one._

Division and multiplication? Annabeth had never taught me that.

_Annabeth!_ I remembered. I glanced at her, at her white face and her closed eyes, and my heart nearly stopped. But her rising chest told me she was still alive.

I pointed my sword at Fraktyon's throat. "I know this will not kill you, but it will cause you great pain. Do not move," I commanded.

I shifted over to Annabeth and placed my hand on her forehead. "Wise Girl," I whispered, tears threatening to spill. "Wake up. Wake up, Wise Girl."

Fraktyon was twitching under my sword. "Do not move," I repeated. My stern and strong voice belied my weak emotions.

"Wise Girl," I tried again. I combed the hair out of her face and patted her head gently. "Wake up."

Then her eyes popped open. Relief flooded me, and as I opened my mouth to express my happiness, her startling gray eyes gave me a hard stare, as if to say, _Be quiet!_ After a few more glares, I caught on.

"No, no, no, Annabeth!" I sobbed. "Wise Girl...Don't leave me. Annabeth! No!"

I turned back to Fraktyon. "Look at what you've done!" I yelled at him with no mercy. "You killed my best friend! You killed her! You are no god. You are a monster. No wonder the gods hate you."

His green eyes blazed with fury. "You dare insult me like tha-"

"You killed Annabeth!" I screamed with agony.

His gaze softened. "I-I didn't mean to. I wanted you to both join me...I thought she would be able to dodge it..."

"It doesn't change the fact that she's dead!"

"I'm sorry, Perseus...I should not have..."

_"Ninety three over thirty two!"_ Annabeth's voice cut through the air.

Fraktyon stared at me incredulously. "No! You can't kill me, or else Multiplius will die with me, and Master will be furious. No, spare me-"

Then his body fell apart, disintegrating into thin air. All that was left was his black fraction tie.

We had defeated the god of fractions.

**|::::::|**

"How are you not dead?" I asked Annabeth gently as I fed her some nectar and ambrosia.

She rolled her eyes. "My fighting skills aren't nearly as bad as yours, Seaweed Brain."

"Answer my question."

"I faked it," she said simply. "It grazed my leg. That was it."

"But the blood and your face..."

"The blood was from my nose. I purposely gave myself a nose bleed so it would look serious. I positioned myself so the blood that leaked was touching my leg. And as for the face, I was just pretending," she explained.

"Thank the gods," I sighed. As I fed her more ambrosia, I frowned. "Oh, yeah. You didn't teach me how to multiply and divide with fractions."

Annabeth tapped her fingers against her knee. "And?"

I grinned. "Teach me!

She groaned. "Fine. But only because you helped me defeat Fraktyon today."

"Tell me already!" I whined.

"Okay, okay!" she said, laughing. "To multiply, you don't have to change the denominators. You multiply the denominators with the denominators and the numerators with the numerators. Then to simplify, you find a common factor that both the denominator and the numerator has and you divide the numerator and the denominator by that common factor. If you can't find a common factor, that means that the answer is already in simplest form and you can just leave it."

"So then..." I said uncertainly, "Three fourths times one half is three eighths. Right?"

"Yep!" Annabeth beamed at me.

"Okay, okay, now teach me division!"

"Well, it's actually the same thing as multiplication," she said in her know-it-all voice. "You just reverse the second fraction. That is called the reciprocal. So, for example, if it was three quarters divided by three, it would actually represent three quarters multiplied by one third."

"Ah," I said in understanding. "So it would be...one quarter."

"Correct! Wow, Percy! What's two thirds divided by four fifths?"

"Erm...six fifths?" I said with doubt.

Annabeth smirked and laughed. "No, Percy, it's five sixths. You reverse the second one, not the first one." Patting me on the back, she teased, "That's the Seaweed Brain I know."

I pouted. "I got it right the first time!"

She threw her head back, chuckling. "Yeah, but if you weren't a Seaweed Brain, you wouldn't be my friend."

I blushed bright red. Annabeth just laughed at my embarrassment and got up.

"Come one, Seaweed Brain. Let's get back to Camp Half-blood," she said, reaching for my hand and pulling me up. Swinging her backpack over her shoulder, we walked through the remains of the palace in silence, without looking back.


End file.
